Online holiday sales have been buoyed this year thanks to some aggressive deals at online retailers, free shipping promotions and the increased sharing of offers through social media.

In addition, with many American households continuing to watch their budgets, online retailers offer the two-pronged benefit of generally lower prices and lower costs incurred during the shopping process. Many Americans have found shopping online (and receiving their purchases via free shipping) a much more cost-effective process than loading their family into the station wagon and heading to the local mall.

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With online holiday spending continuing to grow with each passing year, brick and mortar retailers are being forced to introduce increasingly lucrative deals just to get people in their doors.

The consumer continues to win as online and brick-and-mortar retailers duke it out, and there is no reason to think that this trend will change anytime soon.